1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a child resistant safety cap which has a push and twist feature, thus requiring a complex motion for effective opening. This invention is particularly useful for dangerous materials, such as drugs, and particularly adaptable to squeezable tubes.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
The following patents are representative of child resistant caps and closures, including compound motion-based child resistant caps.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,072,276 to Anthony Nichols describes a self locking tamper proof vial which comprises the combination of a closure member a container with a cylindrical open neck portion and a spring member, said closure member having a top wall and a cylindrical skirt portion, the cylindrical skirt portion have a plurality of projections spaced around the interior surface thereof and positioned in spaced relationship to the top portion of the closure member, said spring member having a resilient disc portion with a post positioned on one side thereof, said spring member being positioned in the closure in the space between the projections and top portion of the closure member and disc member, said spring member being supported by the plurality of projections in the space between said projections and the interior surface of the top portion of said closure member said container having a number of grooves around the cylindrical open neck portion each with one closed upright end terminated below the rim of said neck and an opposite end open at the rim of said neck, said grooves being spaced around the neck at intervals similar to the spacing of the projections of said closure member so then when closure is properly positioned over the rim of the neck and pressed to the neck the projections enter the open end of said grooves and the post of said spring member is pushed upwardly against the top wall of said closure by the force of the rim of the neck portion against the disc portion of the spring member, said top wall being strong enough to withstand the force of the post without being permanently distorted or broken, whereby if the closure is pressed to the neck of the container and then rotated so the projections enter the closed upright end the force of the disc portion of the spring member on the rim of the neck will keep the projections in the closed upright ends of the slots so the open neck of the container is sealed to form a tamper proof vial.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,339,770 to Bruno Weigand describes in combination with a container provided with a mouth portion: a cap having a cylindrical side wall applicable to the mouth portion container, circumferentially-spaced side lugs carried by the cap on the inside thereof, climbing cams carried by the mouth of the container and peripherally disposed thereon for engagement by said lugs when the cap is turned in the closing direction to draw the cap down, recess means for engagement by the lugs to preclude the cap from turning in the opening direction, and tensionable means depending from said side wall for securing the lugs in the recess means, said tensionable means including an annular extension member in the vicinity of said mouth portion in the applied position of the container, said extension member having a resilient wall portion disposed to extend alongside of said mouth with a free edge curved outwardly therefrom for spreading under tension by contact with a relatively fixed surface when the cap is turned in its closing direction.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,595,417 to Arthur Albert Musher describes a closure and plug for a container is provided with elements interengaging with other elements on the mouth of the container, to secure it against opening by young children. In one modification, the closure is provided with a combination safety plug and measuring device; the measuring device is provided with a more versatile structure, and a means of accurately varying the measured quantity, the closure is also improved.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,749,270 to Lyle Claud Affleck describes an arrangement, for closing a container such as a bottle or like container, including a cap within the skirt of which is mounted one or more projections, for example, pins. Each pin fits into a groove formed in or on the neck or similar formation on the container. Each groove has at least one indent within which the inserted pin can be located to hold the cap in a position to seal the container. The cap is provided with means to bias it away from the container when the latter is sealed, and an enlarged indented section within a groove is used so that the biassing action in combination with the enlarged indented section provide a closure for the container which cannot be easily undone by young children. In another arrangement, the pins are located on the container and the grooves within the cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,880,314 to Edward G. Akers describes a container has a neck defined by a cylindrical wall having a planar lip and a frusto-conical interior surface, with the neck opening reducing in diameter toward the interior of the container. The safety cap is cup-shaped having a planar top wall and cylindrical side wall, and having an inner dependent cylindrical skirt concentric with the side wall, the skirt being resilient and disposed to engage the container conical wall in assembled relation. Coacting ratchet lugs extend from the external surface of the container wall and the internal surface of the cap side wall, and are normally urged into engagement to prevent relative rotation of the container and cap by the spring action of the cap skirt and container conical wall. The ratchet lugs have coacting inclined cam surfaces which, in response to rotation of the cap in one direction, force axial inward movement of the cpa to move its top wall contiguous to the container lip; and the container wall and cap have interfering latch means which inhibit reverse rotation from this contiguous position.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,927,783 to Clayton Bogert describes an invention for a leak-proof protective safety closure for containers which is used to prevent inadvertent opening of the container by children or the like. The invention provides a cap having a top and sidewalls which has a wedge-shaped protrusion on the interior of the cap near the base of the sidewalls. A recessed relatively elongated and sloping track is provided on the neck of the container and the wedge rides in the track. Near the base of the track is a notch or groove which accommodates the wedge to lock the cap into position against inadvertent openings. There are pressure means in the form of a rigid ring below the underside of the top of the cap and a flexible plate which flexes while the wedge on the cap rides in the groove and remains under pressure when the wedge snaps into the notch to provide a leak-proof fit. To open the cap it is depressed against the action of the flexible plate to a point where the wedge comes out of the notch or groove and the cap is turned until it is free of the track.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,444,327 to Peter Hedgewick describes a safety container and closure assembly including an integrally-molded, one piece plastic cap having a sealing portion which provides an "oil-can" effect during axial and rotative motion of the cap/relative to the container. The sealing portion comprises a relatively thin, radially outwardly curved wall which is integrally joined to a relatively stiff annular base portion from which a peripheral skirt portion axially projects for receiving the mouth of the container. Integrally formed with the sealing portion is a relatively thin, annular biasing portion which, in turn, is integrally formed with a relatively stiff, inner, disc-like base portion. The biasing portion biases the sealing portion to axially spaced portions such that when the cap is placed on the container, the biasing portion biases the cap in a fixed axial sealing position relative to the container and simultaneously applies pressure to the sealing portion. Preferably, a rib comprising an O-ring seal projects inwardly on the inner surface of the mouth portion of a container and simultaneously engages the sealing portion during the axial and rotative motion of the cap relative to the container.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,567,992 to Eugene E. Davis describes an invention providing a tubular container body and closure assembly with a smooth or flush outside surface. The assembly is provided with bayonet type child resistant closure and tear away tamper resistant band. The container body has a recess to receive a teartap on the tear away band so that the flush outside surface is maintained, the recess in the body being so positioned that when the tear tab is aligned with the recess an internal bead on the closure forming part of the bayonet type locking arrangement is aligned with an external locking slot on the body so that the closure can be applied to the body by a longitudinal downward movement.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,238 to James E. Herr describes a child-resistent, moisture-tight safety closure having an end wall with an annular depending skirt, the skirt having a plurality of locking lugs disposed on the inside thereof. The locking lugs cooperate with retaining notches adjacent to the open mouth of an associated container to releasably retain the closure on the container. A sealing plug integral with the end wall of the closure and concentric with the annular skirt effects a moisture-tight seal with the inner wall of the container. A plurality of resilient members are integral with the interior of the closure at the junction of the top wall and the skirt, the resilient members extending downwardly and inwardly so as to engage the end surface of the container opening. The compression of the resilient members serves to bias the locking lugs on the closure into locking relationship with the retaining notches on the container with a force sufficient to ensure the child-resistant characteristics of the closure.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,603 to Jack Weinstein describes the present invention is directed to a metered dispensing cap system for containers such as tubes and the like. The system has a base element which is attachable to the neck of a squeezable container and which has a sidewall portion and a top. The base element has an opening in the top for outflow of a material from a squeezable container into a meter element. This base element may be removably attachable, e.g. by being screwed on, or may be permanently attached, e.g. by being integrally molded with the container. A one way valve is located in the opening of the base element to permit the flow of material from a container through the opening while preventing backflow. The system also includes a meter element which acts like an inverted trap and which has a sidewall portion and a top with an opening in the top for dispensing of the material therefrom. The sidewall portion of the meter element is slightly larger than and has the same across section shape as the sidewall portion of the base element and this sidewall portion of the meter element is higher than and located about and encompasses the sidewall portion of the base element. Further, the meter element is vertically slidable along the sidewall portion of the base element with an upward position for receiving a volume of material in a pre-determined amount when the squeezable container is squeezed and downward position whereby the opening in the top of the meter element allows for dispensing of the desired amount of fluid when the meter is pushed down.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,127,553 to Jack Weinstein describes the present invention is a liquid metered dispensing container of the squeezable type. The squeezable container has an opening for dispensing liquid therefrom at one end and a bottom at the other end. A non-flexible trap chamber is connected to the opening and extends outwardly therefrom. The trap chamber has a lower end inserted into the container opening and has an inlet orifice extending from the lower end into the container. The inlet orifice is adapted to receive a dip tube which is attached thereto and extends close to or at the bottom of the container. The trap chamber has an upper end with a dispensing orifice. This is small enough to prevent dripping of liquid therefrom by gravity when the bottle is inverted but is large enough to dispense liquid therefrom when the bottle itself is squeezed. A one way valve is connected to the lower end of the trap chamber which permits liquid to flow from the container to the trap chamber but not vice versa. The trap chamber may have indicia so that exact dosage levels of different amounts may be squeezed into the chamber, or the chamber itself may have a single, predetermined volume.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,706 to Jack Weinstein describes a twist and push snap-on, child resistant cap and container has an inner cap seal which is easily snapped onto a neck of a container and an outer cap. The outer cap has a top and sidewalls and has a greater cross-sectional area than the inner cap, and receives and physically restrains the inner cap within the outer cap such that the inner cap may be moved upwardly and downwardly within it over specified distance. The outer cap includes a locking lug located on its inside wall adapted to snap over a circumferential bead located on the neck of the container. There is a stop located on the inside wall of the outer cap and is freely rotatable about the neck of the container except when in contact with stop(s) on the neck of the container at its level of rotation when the outer cap is on the container. A spring mechanism located between the inner and outer cap so as to bias downwardly the inner cap. There is a bead located circumferentially about its neck with a break to allow the lug and stop of the outer cap to pass therethrough. A first stop is located on the neck near but not above or below the opening in the bead and a second stop, larger than the first, is capable of preventing movement of the outer cap when rotated with its stop against its second stop.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,184,760 to Jack Weinstein describes the present invention is directed to a metered side dispensing cap system for containers such as tubes and the like. It includes a chamber unit having an inlet opening in the bottom for flow of a material from a squeezable container into the chamber. The chamber unit has an outlet opening on a sidewall located near the bottom for dispensing material from the chamber in a metered amount. A one-way valve located in the inlet opening on the bottom of the chamber unit permits flow of material through that opening and prevents backflow of material. A piston mechanism moves upwardly and downwardly within the chamber. The piston mechanism is capable of upward movement by material entering the chamber unit when a squeezable container is squeezed and material enters the chamber unit through its inlet opening. The piston is capable of downward movement when its wide top is pushed downward, so as to dispense material through the sidewall outlet opening of the chamber unit. The system is attachable to an open neck of a squeezable container.
Notwithstanding the prior art, the present invention is neither taught nor rendered obvious thereby.